Tasty Licks on the Guitar of Battle Action!
by Sepetyra Navi
Summary: Thirty years after you beat Diamond/Pearl, this axtion involving a new gym leader ensues. Full of pwning, with a bit of fluffy romance, crazy crap happens in the regions of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh!11!11!shift 1! LULZ
1. Chapter 1

This is a thing in which the characters are all based on my real friend's characters in the Pokemon games. So here's a rundown, if you care. I'm Sakura. But she's not much like me, but very similar to my character in Pokemon, get me? Also, I don't have a Duskull obsession, though I love ghost types the most, lulz.

The heavy doors slowly creaked open and in walked a small figure. When the gym leader hit the lights, he found the shadow to be a little girl.

"OMGhi2u." She said.

'Oh great,' thought the gym leader, 'Another little girl.' Then he stood up and smiled at her. "Afternoon. Welcome to the Ecruteak City Gym. I'm Spencer, the leader."

"GO CATERPIE!!" the little girl cried, throwing a poke ball and sending out a tiny Caterpie.

"What? How'd you get the first three badges?! By borrowing your older brothers' Ampharos?" Spencer asked, annoyed.

This happened to him too many times: He has to pwn some little kid and make them cry because he has no trainers in his gym to filter out potential from failure. He, like Blue, the middle-aged man leading the Viridian City Gym in Kanto, has to fight everyone who goes inside. Fortunately for Blue, he's the eighth gym leader. Spencer was the _fourth_ gym leader in the Johto League.

"Alright! I hold nothing back, for it is the rule! Go Haunter! Use Shadow Ball!" Spencer commanded.

Out of his dusk ball emerged a hardy-looking Haunter. It instantly crushed the Caterpie with a healthy Shadow Ball, making the girl cry and run out, actually leaving the Caterpie behind.

"She must've just caught it, huh?" Spencer asked his Haunter, which only laughed. He returned his Pokémon and shrugged. 'Down time. What to do…' He went outside and squinted at the afternoon sun. In a strong attempt to set a mood in his all-ghost gym, he waited around for trainers and read books by candlelight. When a trainer did arrive, he flipped on the gym's lights.

He snuck around the back of a building and peered cautiously through the window. Jackpot. The Ecruteak Dance Theater backstage window was all Spencer needed on his down time. Thirty years ago, the Dance Theater's only dancers were the kimono girls. But now that Ecruteak took a step away from its traditional roots, the theater became a studio for young women to practice things as untraditional as go-go dancing. Not that Spencer was complaining. As he childishly grinned at the scantily-dressed girls, he felt someone tap his shoulder. He jumped and turned around. A young woman stood, frowning with her hands at her waist.

"Ew, Spencer, you're perverted. Are you peeking in on those poor girls again?" she asked.

"Of course not, Sakura," Spencer replied, embarrassed, "I just…you know…like windows…"

"That was a pathetic lie." Sakura said.

Sakura was a young trainer from Sinnoh living in the nearby Olivine city. She was Jasmine's daughter, but had no interest in training Steel-types. Instead, she preferred ghosts, like Spencer. Unfortunately for her, her Pokémon are way too weak to join a gym. She was pretty, very reminiscent of Jasmine, however strangely she dressed. Whenever she went out, she was sure that she had spent at least an hour in front of the mirror, admiring her poppy dress. She had a Duskull barrette in her hair given to her by Spencer when she tried out for his gym and failed miserably. Nobody knew why _he_ had it.

"By the way, you're very late for the Annual Pokémon League Meeting." Sakura said.

"Holy crap, you're right! Crap, crap, crap!! How am I gonna get there in time?!" Spencer asked hysterically, frantically searching his belt for Haunter's ball.

"Well, if you want, I can let you borrow my mother's Magnezone. I'm sure it'll fly you--" but Sakura was left alone after Spencer sent out Haunter and teleported away. She sighed and walked away.

When Spencer arrived at the Johto League's Indigo Plateau, he rushed inside and past the receptionist. He had no time to flirt with her today. He followed the signs to the meeting room and cautiously ducked inside and found his seat. The room had four long tables in it, with enough seats for the eight gym leaders and the members of the Elite Four of each region. The Kanto region was represented by an ancient drawing of Mew. The Johto region was represented by an ancient drawing of Ho-oh and Lugia glaring at each other. The Hoenn region was represented by a modern drawing of Groudon and Kyogre. The Sinnoh region was represented by a new drawing of the recently discovered Arceus. It used to be a drawing of Palkia, Dialga, and Darkrai attacking each other, but since the God Pokémon Arceus' discovery, it's been huge news.

"Glad you could join us, Spencer." Said Gold, the champion of Johto.

"You guys from Johto are always late…" muttered Steven, Jasmine's husband and champion of Hoenn. They married in Sinnoh, had one daughter, Sakura, and went back to their jobs as League members. Though separated, they keep well in touch over video phone.

Cynthia, the champion of Sinnoh, smiled. "Alright. Now that everyone has arrived, let's get down to business." She began to explain what was new this year in the League. Nothing too exciting; two new gym leaders in the Kanto and Hoenn regions, the scolding of Misty for never being at her gym.

Spencer recalled a time when he was in Kanto with a gift from Red to Misty. He asked around her gym for her, but they all said she was at Lover's Cove.

'For the past thirty years…' Spencer had thought, 'That lady has no luck.'

"By the way," Steven said, "Red still isn't back from wherever he went yet. If any of you see him, tell him to get back to the Kanto League's Indigo Plateau immediately."

Thirty-three years ago, after he was defeated by Gold at Mt. Silver, Red fled into uncharted areas of the world, training. It's safe to say he's still alive; Gold says Red was holding back a bit.

Still, Red and Gold are beyond powerful. When he was young, Spencer always wanted to be the one to beat Gold, but as he aged and became more intelligent, he realized that it was an impossible feat.

Later that evening, Spencer headed back toward his house behind the gym. He chuckled when he saw Sakura training her two Pokémon, Spiritomb and Misdreavus, in front of his house.

"Okay, Spiritomb, use Hypnosis!" she cried with determination.

The Forbidden Pokémon attempted the move, but it did nothing to Misdreavus.

Spencer snuck up behind her to scare her, but he paused when she bent down to pat her Spiritomb on the head…face. "I didn't know they made Duskull print panties."

Sakura squealed and jumped. She turned angrily at Spencer, catching her breath. "Spencer! You pervert!"

"You must like Duskull a lot. A barrette, underwear…but you don't even have one." He said.

"Actually, it's my favorite Pokémon family. Duskull, the Requiem Pokémon; Dusclops, the Beckon Pokémon; Dusknoir, the Gripper Pokémon. So…romantic."

"Romantic? I really don't think the three death-based Pokémon are supposed to be romantic."

"On the contrary. Think of it like I do. A Duskull falls in love, but he's too shy to talk to the girl. So he follows her forever."

"Stalkers are not romantic."

"Shh, I'm not done…When the Duskull evolves into Dusclops, he finds the courage and beckons her to him. But one day there was a terrible accident. His love is killed and he blames himself. He decides she deserves the best, even after death, so he evolves to Dusknoir and brings her to the realm of the spirits and holds her close forever as the Gripper Pokémon." Sakura cupped her hands together and let out a passionate sigh.

"I don't think that's what they mean by 'Beckon' and 'Gripper.' Trust me." Spencer said.

"Think what you will, but I like my story."

"By the way, why are you training here outside my house?"

"Oh! I took the liberty of cooking your dinner, but you didn't come home when I expected, so I think it might be a little cold." Sakura said.

"Really? …Wait, how'd you get into my house?"

"The door was unlocked."

Spencer facepalmed and went inside.

"'K. Bye." Sakura said. Then she looked around awkwardly for awhile and left.

The next day…

Spencer awoke and sat up in his bed. He yawned and got out and took a quick shower. Afterward, he put his clothes on and walked out to his kitchen to find a delicious-looking breakfast sitting on his table.

"Wha…?" he muttered. He looked around confusedly and jumped when he saw Sakura standing in front of his sink, washing dishes. She wore an apron with little pink hearts and had her medium length hazel colored hair tied back into a lose ponytail.

She looked back at Spencer and smiled cheerfully. "Morning sleepyhead! Made you breakfast! Hurry up, before it gets cold," she said.

"How'd you get in my house again?!" Spencer demanded.

"The door was _still_ unlocked, silly."

Spencer, though frustrated with himself, sat down at took up on Sakura's delicious home cooking. 'For a sixteen-year old, Sakura makes some seriously righteous pancakes.' He thought, gorging himself with the food.

Sakura turned off the sink and sat down across from Spencer watching him eat with her head rested on her hands. "Like it?" she asked.

Spencer nodded, continuously stuffing his mouth with pancakes.

"I'm glad. …So…um, what are your plans for today?" Sakura asked.

"I was thinking about heading to Azalea Town and talk to Nick about something I want." Spencer replied between mouth-stuffings.

"…Is it about Giratina?"

Spencer closed his eyes and grinned. "You're smart, girl. Yeah, it's about Giratina. In a few more months, I think I can head to Sinnoh and search for the lost fourth lake, Sendoff Spring. It's there that the legendary Turnback Cave is said to be. And within said cave, the Renegade Pokémon is rumored to appear from its own dimension to ours."

"Where'd you get _that_ info?"

"A Pokémon told me that. It's not too important really."

"What Pokémon? There are only a few that could actually speak, and you haven't met any of them, I don't think. Slowking, Lucario, Lugia, and Mewtwo are all I know off." Sakura said, as if she had met them all herself.

"There's another. But like I said, it's not important."

"Please tell me."

Spencer sneered. "I'm sure you'd like to know. Too bad."

"Pleeease?" Sakura pleaded, grabbing hold on Spencer's hands.

"You'll find out soon enough. Now, to the matters at hand…GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!" he cried.

Sakura whimpered as she was forced out.

Spencer closed the door behind her and sighed. 'She's so weird…' he thought, 'Breaking into my house and cooking me meals…' Then he shrugged it off and went into his garage.

"And who are you?" asked Cynthia. She, Gold, and Steven sat at a small table, interviewing people who wanted to join the Pokémon League.

"Name's Logan. I specialize in sweep/pwn tactics," said a long haired man, "And this here's my Weavile." He added, introducing his Dark and Ice sweeper.

"When we ask for what you specialize in, we don't mean 'give us your tactics.' We mean what type of Pokémon." Steven said impatiently.

"Duly noted," Logan muttered, brushing his hair out of his face.

"What? Hey, if you're gonna be a smart-ass, I'll have half a mind to kick you out of here right now and sweep you myself with my Heatran." Steven warned, getting up from his seat in agitation.

"Nonetheless, I wanna be gym leader in the Sinnoh region." Logan said.

"That means you'll be under my control. Was it Dark or Ice that you specialize in?" Cynthia asked.

"Neither. I would like to be a mixed gym leader."

"That's Blue's job," Gold said, softly grinning. He could see it there. The future of the Pokémon League was a bright one.

"I know, and I feel there should be at least one in every region. I have a friend whose skills mirror mine and she's considering either Johto for its traditional style, or Hoenn for its exotic beaches." Logan explained.

"I'm quite partial to exotic beaches," whispered Gold to himself, "Maybe I should move to Hoenn."

"Well we can't have two mixed gym leaders in Johto. Tell her that's out of the question." Cynthia stated, writing something down on her clipboard. "Anyway, Mister Logan…how long have you been training? How do you train?"

"I've been battling since I was a lad. My training regimen consists of monotonous random battles with any trainer I can find," said Logan, "In fact…"

He pointed at Gold, who was still grinning.

"I challenge you, Gold. If I can beat you, than I join the Pokémon League and become a gym leader."

Gold stood up. "Alright, sounds good. If you'd follow me outside to the battle arena." He began to walk out, with Logan and his Weavile following.

Steven slammed his fists on the table. "Gold, you can't just let random people battle you! You're a champion, not a haphazard trainer!"

"Calm down, Steven." Cynthia said, also following Gold, "Just watch."

Spencer pulled his little piece of crap car into a dirt driveway next to Azalea's Pokémon School. He glared at the new sign as walked in. 'Where children learn the basics of being a Pokémon Trainer,' it read. Nick, the teacher at the school, and Spencer's good friend, was all about blatancy. If he says you're a bad trainer and you'll never amount to anything, then you're a bad trainer and you'll never amount to anything.

Spencer slowly opened the door a crack and stuck his hand threw, waving.

"Hello?" he asked, making his way in. He was surprised when he found himself being stared down by thirty or so kids.

"Spencer? How unexpected," said Nick, standing with his back to a whiteboard covered in Pokémon facts, "I was just telling my students how normal and fighting attacks have no effect on Ghost types…perhaps you'd like to help me demonstrate?"

Spencer was embarrassed, but he wanted to look cool in front of the kids so he nodded. As he made his way toward the front of the room, he chuckled. "Am I missing something? It's Saturday, so why are all these kids here?"

"The new rules state that children must receive six days of schooling so that they might keep up to the incredible standards set by the student body of Sinnoh. Please select one of your Pokémon that we shall use for the demonstration."

Spencer nodded again and took out a Pokeball. "Now, be warned kids," Spencer bragged, "My Pokémon are both strong _and_ frightening, but I'll keep 'em in line so they don't freak you out too much. Also, remember, I'm a Gym Leader, so consider this an honor. Go! Bannette!" The doll-like Pokémon came out grinning fiendishly.

"And I'll use Slaking." Nick said, sending out his Pokémon. "Use Mega Punch now." His Pokémon yawned and swung its large fists right through Spencer's Bannette.

The children gasped.

"Do you see how my normal type Mega Punch went right through Mr. Spencer's Bannette? However, ghost-type attacks do not work on normal-type Pokémon. Spencer, please use your attack." Nick commanded.

"Shadow Sneak, Bannette!" Spencer called. His Pokémon became a shadow and appeared behind Slaking, and before the oaf could look behind it, Bannette attacked. However, it hit without success as the attack caused Slaking no damage.

"And that's what happens. Children, we covered a lot of material today; you are free to go," Nick said, "No class tomorrow, William, stop coming on Sundays please."

Some kid who must have been William nodded as he gathered his things.

Spencer felt someone tug on his shirt so he looked down and saw a little boy with a sweet hat. "Spencer?" he asked.

"Yeah?"

"Oh ehm gee, I'm, like, your biggest fan! I hope to challenge you someday and, like, totally lose!" the kid exclaimed.

"Oh, that's cool…um…okay; you can leave now though, seriously." Spencer replied.

The kid grinned and ran out after the mass of children heading home.

"So, Spencer…you wanted something, I presume?" asked Nick as he erased the whiteboard.

"Yeah, it's about Giratina again. Can you tell me what you've learned?"

"Ah, yes. The impossible quest. And here I am thinking you came all the way here to pick me up to go pick up some hot chicks."

"Well, Nick, that would be great, but that's not why I'm here."

"But what if it was?"

"Seriously, that would be great, but that's not why I'm here." Spencer repeated.

Nick chuckled to himself and put his eraser down and sat at his desk. "I kid you, Spencer. But as I said times before, this is not a possible quest for you. Even if you ever met it face to face, there's no way someone of your strength could obtain it. It's part dragon, after all."

"You're saying I'm too weak?"

"I'm sorry, but it's the truth."

Spencer turned away and sighed. "Whatever...Just get in the car..."

"We're going to go pick up hot chicks?"

"Just come on," The two headed out.


	2. Chapter 2

A young woman walked into into the Indigo Plateau and asked the receptionist where the battle arena is. She was told it was on the roof, so she boarded the elevator. The lights indicated she had quite a few floors to go, so she took a quick glance at her Pokedex. Three hundred and thirty three owned, more than any other she knew of. But there were so many one-of-a-kind types that she knew she would never get a hold of, so she decided long ago that her current owned number was enough. Finally, she reached the top floor. Before exiting the elevator, she patted down her skirt, being careful not to let the wind take advantage of it.

"Excuse me, miss, but who gave you permission to be up here?" Steven asked. He was standing right next to the elevator where he was observing the battle.

The woman laughed quietly and rubbed the back of her neck. "Nobody," she said, "But my friend is in this battle see, and--"

"I hardly care who your friends are, you need to leave! There is an unofficial match involving a League Champion, and League rules state that one requires all eight badges to witness such and event!" Steven explained.

"I have all of the badges in the Hoenn region and the Sinnoh region..." the woman said, opening her bag to reveal them, "Do those count?"

Steven sneered and went back to watching the match. But it had apparently just ended.

Gold let out a very audible laugh. "I've never had to try that hard! And to think I won..." he shook hands with his opponent, Logan.

"Oh, Logan!" the woman called. She waved her hands around wildly in an attempt to get his attention from all the way across the battlefield.

Logan glanced over at her with a cool smile.

"He lost, so he's not going to be a gym leader, right?" Steven asked Cynthia, who appeared out of nowhere.

"Those were the rules, but I think Gold will say otherwise..." she replied.

Gold made his way back to the other two Champions with a massive grin. "This guy's stronger than me." he stated.

"What?! But you defeated him!" Steven exclaimed.

"He threw the match. I'm not sure why, but he let his Weavile get hit straight on with my Typhlosion's Flamethrower when it was completely obvious he could have dodged it.

The woman ran over to Logan and they began to talk. Steven watched with malice. "There's just no way," he muttered.

"So anyway, I say if we let this kid be a gym leader, he would easily be a better challenge than Blue." Gold said.

"Which would be good with all these powerful up-and-coming trainers out there..." Cynthia added, putting her hand to her chin in thought, "What say you, Steven?"

"I think this is an outrage!" he cried.

"Outrage is for dragon types," said Logan as he and the woman made their way to the three.

"My name is Hikari, by the way, and I'm that person Logan mentioned who would like to become a mixed gym leader as well." the woman said with a quick bow. She reached in her bag and handed her Pokedex to Cynthia. All three champions took a glance at it.

"I love this!" Gold exclaimed. "The future of the Pokemon League is beaming!"

Sakura slid her hand across the chair Spencer sits in when trainers enter his gym. It was late, and she was planning on meeting him there for a surprise she kept in her Dusclops-shaped bag, but he had yet to show up. Instead, she began to pretend as if she were the gym leader. She sat in the chair, which was very throne-like, and crossed her legs with an evil grin, much like Spencer would.

"Welcome to the Ecruteak City Gym. I'm Sakura, the leader," she declared in a deep voice, attempting to mimic Spencer. Suddenly, she shot up and took out a Pokeball. "Oh, it's a battle you want, huh?" she asked in her deepest voice. "Go, Misdreavus!" She threw the ball on the ground and let her ghost type rise into the air, confusedly.

The Pokemon looked back at her, wondering what the problem was.

Sakura collapsed back into the chair and sighed deeply. "It's useless," she whispered to her Pokemon, "We're much too weak to join this gym...I should just give up being a trainer..."

There was a long silence as her Misdreavus made a pathetic whimper of sadness.

"Now that ain't the way to be a successful trainer..." a voice said, coming from behind her.

Sakura leapt into the air, flying out of the chair and landing on her ass. It was Spencer, who must have teleported in with his over-sized Haunter who was hovering behind him.

"Spencer, I--" Sakura began, regretting being in the gym without him and expecting a punishment.

Spencer narrowed his gaze on her, the moonlight shining through the tinted sun roof above them. He got down on one knee and placed his hand gently on her chin. "Sakura, do you know why I gave you that Duskull barrette?" he asked quietly.

She blushed. 'He's touching me...and staring into my eyes with such intensity...' she thought.

"It's because it..." then he paused awkwardly.

Sakura blinked.

Then, Spencer fell over, toppling on top of her. ...Out cold.

Haunter lifted a large bottle of wine with a huge grin.

'So he's drunk...' Sakura thought, annoyed, 'I should have guessed...I can smell the alcohol on his breath.'

Spencer awoke with a start and sat up, finding himself in his own bed. He could smell bacon and pancakes, an increasingly familiar scent in his home. Sakura was obviously making him breakfast again. Slowly and carefully, he got himself out of bed and made his way wearily to the kitchen, where, sure enough, the girl was standing in front of the sink, the table decorated with food.

"I see you're awake," Sakura said without looking back. She turned off the faucet and turned to him. "What the hell is your problem?" she shouted.

"Ah, could please not speak so loudly?" Spencer asked. He tried to sit at the table, but tripped and fell to a knee.

Sakura only watched as he struggled back to his feet.

"The food looks good," Spencer muttered. At that moment he leaned forward and threw up on the floor. He was about to topple over into it, but Sakura appeared at his side and lead him back to bed. She found a bucket and placed in on the floor next to him.

"That's in case you can't make it to the bathroom in time," she said coldly. Then she exhaled and grinned. "A sixteen year-old girl taking care of an adult...Unheard of in these lands, Spencer. You should feel pretty bad right now."

"I feel like crap..." he muttered, taking it very literally. Then his eyes shot open and he hopped to his feet, rushing to the bathroom.

Sakura could see him get on his knees and hurl something fierce into the toilet-bowl.

"Maybe I should stay here until you get better?" Sakura suggested, beginning to see the humor in the situation.

"No...I gotta go to the gym... Gonna be a busy day today..." Spencer said through labored breaths.

"Out of the question. You have a terrible hang-over, and there's no chance you'll even be able to _make _it to the gym!" Sakura snapped.

"Then you gotta do it."

She gasped.

Nervously the girl sat in the chair, awaiting anyone who entered. She was given Spencer's Bannette and Froslass, while his Haunter stayed with him to attend to his needs. She was told that if for any reason she was beginning to lose, she had to admit she's not the real gym leader and deal with a severely pissed-off trainer. But according to Spencer, Banntte and Froslass were more than enough for all the random bright-and-hopefuls to handle. Fortunately for her, those people had yet to show up. At about two in the afternoon, the gym was still empty.

"Sure is a busy day, all right..." Sakura muttered as she played chess against Froslass, who was pwning.

At that moment, the moment when Froslass check-mated Sakura's king, the large doors swung open.

Spencer had the lighting in the gym set so he could not see the challenger until he flipped a switch. Sakura flipped it and met eyes with a boy maybe two years younger than herself.

"Um, welcome to the Ecruteak City Gym...M-my name is Sakura..." she said nervously.

"1 DUN C4R3 WH0 U R, d00d!" the boy shouted, "1 M H3R3 2 F1GH7 P0K3RM4NZ!"

Sakura was having trouble understanding the boy's strange dialect.

"M3 1337, U N00B! T4ST3 M4H SK1LLZ AN G3T PWNT!" The boy then through out a Pokeball, releasing an incompetent looking Bidoof.

'I guess Spencer was right about only needing two of his Pokemon...' Sakura thought. "Go, Froslass!"

The Pokemon took her place, creating a small flurry in the arena with her Hail technique.

"1 C! UR G0NN4 0BSTRUCT M4H EYEZ W1T UR SN0W!"

"Now, use Blizzard!!" Sakura commanded.

Spencer's Pokemon were very obedient, so Froslass did not hesitate. The Bidoof was frozen solid, knocked out.

The trainer frowned and returned his Pokemon. "Now it's time to get serious..." he said.

Sakura was surprised in his change of tone.

"Go, Infernape!" he called, sending out the Pokemon.

It did multiple back flips and took a classic Bruce Lee pose.

"Close Combat!" the trainer called.

Infernape appeared in the air a few feet away from Frolass, his leg extended in a kick, which hit with intensity. Being super effective and super powerful, Froslass was knocked out.

Sakura was amazed. According to Spencer, there hasn't been anyone challenging in months. She didn't expect to get wasted.

"That was poorly planned..." the trainer said, "Are you really the fourth gym leader of Ecrueak?" he asked jokingly.

"Actually," Sakura began, bowing lowly, "I'm not. The real leader is at home sick...I'm afraid if you were to defeat the next Pokemon, I'm not authorized to give you the Grave Badge."

"Bullcarp in mah mouth!" the trainer cried.

Just as Spencer said.

"I hardly give a flying shizzle about if you're authorized or not," the trainer said, "If I defeat the next Pokemon, I'm _taking_ the Grave Badge!"

Sakura looked down at the front of her dress where she was wearing the badge. Having some kid grab at it would be very uncomfortable for her. "I won't let you take it!" she declared.

"Back it up with a powerful Pokemon!"

"I will! Go, Bannette!"

"Flamethrower!"

Before Bannette could gets its footing, it was sent soaring through the air in a vortex of searing hot embers. Surprisingly to Sakura, it fainted.

"Are you kidding?" the trainer asked, walking up to his Infernape to pat it on the back.

"Um, if you wait here, I can go get his other Pokemon..." Sakura said pathetically.

"No chance. Now, unless you got another one with you, hand over the badge."

Sakura turned away for a moment and shuttered Spencer's reaction to what she was about to do. She unpinned the badge from her dress and turned back to the trainer. But there was something blocking her path. A massive dark gray figure with a small radio antenna on its head. It slowly turned to Sakura, its single red eye piercing her weak frame.

"What troubles you, human?" it asked in a multitude of ethereal voices. After it spoke, radio static could be heard emitting from its body somehow.

"Wh-who are you?" Sakura managed to ask.

"I am the fourth Pokemon of this gym. I am Dusknoir, the Gripper."

The Infernape shivered in fear. To Pokemon, Dusknoir is the Grim Reaper. He is the one who takes the truly fallen to the realm of the dead, making him one of the only Pokemon worth fearing.

"So," Hikari said to Logan later that evening, "What do you think will happen?"

The two were close friends since they become trainers. Both hailing from Celedon City in Kanto, they spent many days of their childhood together. Logan quickly showed potential to become able to enter the Indigo Plateau, while Hikari had the lengthiest list of Pokemon under her belt. But it would be unsafe to assume that she cannot train her hundreds of Pokemon, as she is considered close to Logan in strength.

Most passers-by consider the two as a couple, but Logan is only in love with his own power. Hikari is very complex, however showing no emotion of affection for anything but her Pokemon.

"What do I think'll happen 'bout what?" Logan asked, sipping some of his fountain drink. They were sitting across from each other at a random restaurant outside the Pokemon League.

"About the match with Gold," Hikari said, annoyed that he wasn't paying attention.

Logan only shrugged.

This resulted in a quick facepalm on Hikari's part. There was only one other person for Logan to pay attention to, and that was her, so why wasn't he--?

"Thinkin' we're gonna have to replace a gym leader, that's for sure," Logan said.

'Oh, now he wants to talk,' Hikari thought. "How will they go about having us replace them?"

"Like, six, approximately."

"What?" Hikari asked, completely baffled as to what Logan was talking about.

"What? What'd you say?"

Another facepalm. "Nothing...Never mind..."

Logan shrugged again. He leaned back in his chair and almost fell over when his phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and stood up. "Yo," he greeted.

There was a pause as Hikari just kind of stared at him.

"Okay, we'll see you there. Yeah... Bye." Logan put the phone back in his pocket with a small grin.

"What?"

"You got a big flying-type with you?"

"The fourth Pokemon of this gym?" Sakura echoed, "All this time I thought Spencer only had three."

"I have a duty to preform on a regular basis..." Dusknoir said, still with his back to her, "But I am summoned in times of need."

"Summoned? But I didn't even know about you until just now..."

Dusknoir pointed to the antenna on his head. "I pick up thousands of messages per minute. Now, I must quickly defeat this foe and return to my job..." He made of ball of shadow energy in his hand and aimed it at the Infernape. "Try and fight back and I'll drag you to the realm of the dead with me..." he muttered.

The Infernape stood still as he was blasted by the shadow ball. Then, he fell to his knees, ending with a collapse.

The trainer returned it and growled. "There's no way I can win here..." he said quietly to himself.

"Have you any more?" Dusknoir asked, sort of overshadowing Sakura completely.

"I do, but I give up." declared the trainer as he put his Pokeball back on his belt.

Dusknoir looked down with a nod. "Then I must make my leave...But first..." he turned to Sakura, causing her to jump. The Pokemon was over seven feet...she was just over five and a half feet. "Who are you? You are not Spencer..."

Sakura could not help but notice that the Pokemon spoke with a large mouth on his stomach. "Um..." she muttered, afraid to speak. Though she said Dusknoir was one of her favorite Pokemon, it scared the crap out of her in person.

"I see...You are Spencer's mate, then?"

"Wh-what?! Where did you get that?!" Sakura exclaimed, blushing.

Dusknoir let out a strange laugh, showing even Death has a sense of humor. "You just told me with your reaction. Now, tell Spencer I have arrived and left. Also make sure, and this is very important, to tell him that to obtain what he seeks will require him to unlock the secrets of Sendoff Spring. Tell him that the next time we meet, I may be able to help him out." Suddenly, he disappeared in a flash of static.

The disappearance left Skaura's hair standing on end.

"WUT A W31RD d00d, LULZ," the trainer said.

"ARE YOU GOING TO TALK LIKE THAT ALL DAY?!" Sakura screamed.

The trainer's eyes widened. "Whoa...I thought you were a quiet girl...Sorry."

Sakura slowly slid down and sat on her shins. "No, I'm sorry. That was just a little weird for me. I'm also sorry that you cannot get the Grave badge. You were obviously more than strong enough,"

"Yeah, that Dusknoir was unbelievable. To tell the truth, I was overconfident that I'd pwn Spencer in the match. That's why I teased with the Bidoof and talked like a n00b."

"Well, maybe if I explain your power to Spencer, he'd give up a Grave badge..." Sakura suggested.

Trying not to be a cocky fool and act as smooth as possible, the trainer nodded. "That sounds grand...They call me Fangor, by the way."

"Fangor? What a name..." Sakura said, getting up and dusting her legs off. "Come on, I'll take you to his place...But like I said, he's sick, so bear with him."

"Alright, first, let me make a phone call to my bro." Fangor said. He reached into his pocket for his phone and took a step outside. Sakura followed.

A few blocks away, they could see that Spencer had a guest over, as there was a car parked outside his house. The license plate read, "HOTECHR," but Sakura wasn't sure who it was.

She opened the door and stepped in, followed by Fangor. "Spencer, are you up?" she called, taking her shoes off.

A head poked around the corner of the doorway to his bedroom, but it wasn't Spencer's. "Hello? Who is it?" he asked.

"Um, who are you?" Sakura asked, confusedly. She assumed that only she was able to enter his house randomly.

"It's okay, Sakura!!" Spencer called from the bedroom, "This' my bud, Nick!"

"Oh, the teacher from Azalea Town?" Fangor asked.

"Wait, who's _your_ guest?" Spencer asked. Yes. Without seeing each other, it was a big ask-fest.

So, the two went into Spencer's room and introduced properly, with handshakes and bows. There was also a short back story as to why Fangor was with Sakura.

"So you say he dominated Froslass _and_ Banntte in one hit?" Spencer asked. He was sitting up in his bed, recovering at a surprising pace. He was shirtless as well, so everyone could see the tattoo extending across his chest. It was hard to make out, as detailed as it was. But it was clear that it was something rather creepy.

"That's it," Sakura agreed.

"How do I know it just wasn't your crappy commanding skills?"

Sakura lowered her head. "I know I'm not fit to be your replacement, sir, but I promise I did my best."

Spencer cocked his head. "'Sir?' A little formal, isn't it? And I didn't mean to insult you, I just..."

He was cut off by a sniffle made by Sakura. She was fighting back tears as hard as she could, but to no avail. A few of the tears dripped off her face and onto her lap.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I-I didn't mean to--" Spencer sputtered.

Sakura jumped to her feet and bowed. "Excuse me," she whispered, followed by her exit.

Nick gave a concerned look at Spencer and got up to go after the girl.

Spencer sighed. After a brief pause, he reached across the bed to and end table, which he opened. From it, he took out small box. He put his hand inside and pulled out a Grave badge and handed it to Fangor.

"I believe her," he said, "Congratulations."

Fangor looked at the badge with a smile. It wasn't a smile of joy, but it was something. "Quite a sensitive girl, isn't she?" he asked, putting the badge on the inside of his overshirt.

"I blame her father. You heard of the Hoenn League Champion, Steven?"

"Steven is her dad? That's sort of hard to believe...Does she train steel types?"

"No, she's sort of a ghost-fanatic."

"Oh, so that's why she was taking your place at the gym. She's the only trainer before you."

"Actually," Spencer said, "No, she is not. I feel like a huge douche for saying this, but she's much too weak to join my gym. And I don't even have high standards."


End file.
